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If You Want to Date A Confident Leader, You Have to Let Him Lead

As a dating coach for smart, strong, successful women, I spend a LOT of time talking to women on the phone about their love lives.

In fact, I’ve participated in so much girl talk, I’m like an honorary girlfriend at this point.

And the one thing that I consistently hear from women is this:

I want a man who is a leader.

I want a man who makes decisions.

I want a man who has a plan.

I want a man who can take control – start his own company, book his own vacation, and yes, even be dominant in the bedroom.

(My female clients tell me EVERYTHING!)

It’s really easy to see why this kind of guy is attractive.

Confident men inspire confidence in women.

Confident men inspire confidence in women.

And as much as we’ve evolved as a society in terms of gender equality, there’s still a primal urge where many women long for a taste of a traditional marriage.

ALL of my clients have careers, yet the majority still want to feel protected, preferably by a tall, broad, successful man who can bring home the bacon, wipe away the tears and beat up the bad guys, if necessary.

What’s not to like about that?

Who doesn’t want a man who is an equal?

After all… You’re a go-getter.

You’re as smart as most of the men you meet.

You work hard and make a comparable income.

You have close relationships with friends and family.

You have strong opinions and aren’t afraid to voice them.

And yet you often meet men who don’t mesh with you.

The attractive alpha males are egocentric commitment-phobes.

The nice guys are bland and wishy-washy and don’t turn you on.

You figured out what you really want – an alpha male who is nice! Or maybe a nice guy with balls! Someone to make you feel excited and safe simultaneously.

What nice guys don’t realize is that you’re not looking for a man to cater to your whims

Unfortunately, these men are very, very, rare. You’ve probably noticed.

So if it’s so hard to find one of these mythical beasts, what are you to do?

I’ve got a few ideas.

In fact, as one of those men, I’ve got a lot of ideas on that very subject, but before we get to those I have to give you credit for knowing one big thing: you can’t change guys.

Which is why most adult women have largely grown out of their bad-boy phase.

Except, of course, when you haven’t.

So instead of dating the rebellious teenage rocker, you date the 44-year-old guy who’s never been married. He’s not on the road 40 weeks a year, but he works 60 hours a week.

Both men claim to want to find love, but aren’t willing to sacrifice for it.

These guys are a waste of your time.

It’s not that they’re bad people, it’s that they don’t have much to give to the relationship.

Thus, you have two choices – get out of the relationship, or accept that you’ll always come in second to his work or freedom. You know what that’s like.

To be waiting on a guy, to have the strongest feelings for him… only to learn that he’s not willing to put forth the effort or commitment necessary to make you feel safe.

It happens all the time, and it’s a crushing feeling.

Then there are the nice guys. Oh, I know how you feel about nice guys…

Here’s the thing about nice guys:

They really want to please you.

Really. Really. Want to please you.

It’s the most important thing in the world for them.

Which is why they’re always asking you how to do it.

“Where do you want to go tonight?”
“Was there something that I did wrong?”
“What can I do to make you happy?”

What nice guys don’t realize is that you’re not looking for a man to cater to your whims.

You’re looking for a man to lead, to make sound decisions, to drive the car while you ride shotgun.

Yet the guys who do that – the leaders – are often the most arrogant, most difficult, most combustible ones around. Right?

How do you find a guy who puts you first, but ALSO can take the lead?

If the nice guy wants to please you, why should he even bother to make any decision that you’re just going to overrule anyway?

Well, if it’s not by trying to change the alpha male, what do you have left? The nice guy.

But there’s a problem. And, believe it or not, you may be at the root of it.

You want the nice guy to lead, but you refuse to let him do it.

Before you get angry, think about it for a second.

He suggests a bar. You tell him you’d prefer one in a different part of town.
He suggests a movie. You tell him that you weren’t crazy about the reviews.
He suggests a weekend trip. You tell him you had another destination in mind.
He suggests a new position in the bedroom. You say you don’t do that.

Your intentions are pure – you want what you want – but the message that you’re sending to him is unmistakable:

You can be a leader and make decisions, as long as I have final approval.

And if the nice guy wants to please you, why should he even bother to make any decision that you’re just going to overrule anyway? He might as well ask you that awful question:

“What do YOU want to do?”

Hey, at least he knows you’re not going to shoot down your own idea.

I remember the first time I brought this concept up to a private dating coaching client.

She’s mid-40s, attractive, vice president of a big company. Definitely an alpha female – a woman who can intimidate men but really wants a man who is stronger than she is.

She was explaining to me how annoyed she was with this new man she was dating.

“It was bad enough when he took me to a dive bar with live music. But then, when he sensed that I wasn’t happy, he asked me where I wanted to go instead! And I’m thinking, ‘Buddy, just make a decision and tell me what we’re doing. I don’t want to have to come up with everything.’

I told her that I understood why she didn’t like his choice of bars. I told her that I understood how she wanted him to make his own decision.

And then I told her what I really felt.

“It’s like you want him to be the President, yet you want to have veto power.”

She laughed, and then got very silent. I continued:

You can’t have two leaders. If you want him to lead, you have to be willing to follow. You can’t overrule him.

Strong-willed men – the kind that inspire confidence – are less likely to be “pleasers”.

However, if you, as a woman, want to be a leader, understand these two things:

1) You’re not going to attract an alpha male. Male leaders don’t partner with women who tell them what to do.

2) You’re going to attract less assertive men, and you can’t get upset at them for asking how to please you.

Hey, I don’t make these rules! I just observe them.

But it makes perfect sense, doesn’t it?

Strong-willed men – the kind that inspire confidence – are less likely to be “pleasers”.

They’re going to march to the beat of their own drums and hope that you follow along.

The more you fight with them and try to rein them in, the weaker your relationship. You’ve probably seen this before in your own life. This is why strong men often marry easy-going women. It’s easier because there’s no argument about who’s going to lead.

Nice guys – the kind that you don’t respect as much – want only to please you, and will bend over backwards to do so.

They’ve learned that you’re going to assert your will no matter what they say, and they find it easier to ask directly how to make you happy.

And what’s the point of making a decision that’s likely to be vetoed anyway?

I can almost hear you steaming right now.

“I don’t tell men what to do. I don’t want to be boss. I just want an equal relationship!”
I hear you. And you’re right.

There IS a middle ground. All relationships are about compromise.

I’m not suggesting you let an alpha male make all the decisions while you keep quiet.

I’m not suggesting you make all the decisions for the nice guy either.

I’m just observing these important concepts in understanding men:

The alpha male is less likely to compromise. If you can’t handle that he’s got a strong ego and doesn’t want to do things your way, don’t date him.

The nice guy is more willing to compromise, so don’t hold it against him. It’s necessarily not a sign of weakness; it may be a sign of wisdom.

Nice guys just want to get along, which can be a good thing when you’re a strong-willed woman. After all, you’re going to have less conflict with a man who puts your needs above his.

Your other choice is to date the selfish and arrogant alpha male, who usually puts his needs first, as you can tell from years of trying to tame the charismatic types.

Want to find a man who can pull off the balance between nice and arrogant? Sorry. I’m already taken. 😉

But I know for a fact there are plenty more of us out there.

Just don’t keep on doing the same thing – chasing alpha males and waiting for them to change. Because, as you’ve seen, that can be a really frustrating – and futile – process.

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Comments:

31

hunter

If a man can clear his mind, and look into his dates eyes, (hopefully she isn’t wearing a low cut dress) and listen closely, he can come close to reading what is on her mind, sometimes. If the woman is fearful, the man can’t read her.

I take Evan’s point but… there’s also a subset of alpha men who are most attracted to demanding, high maintenance women. They buy into the whole story that if the princess wants me I must be good. Usually these men are alpha in all areas of their life except in their intimate relationships where they are completely under the woman’s thumb (maybe what Dan @23 is getting at when he talks about these interpersonal dynamics being domain-specific).

A lot of it is borne of insecurity. Some are playing out their mommy issues and with women who make them feel they;re not quite good enough. Others are looking to prop up their sense of self with externals – career, belongings, desirable partner. They quickly lose interest in women who are easygoing and accepting (and no those are not euphemisms for ‘doormat’).

I’ve seen this dynamic too many times to dismiss it as a rare aberation of the dominant male prefers submissive female dynamic.

I don’t disagree with you, Morgan. Alpha men go for alpha women. I did for 35 years. It never worked. Too much ego, narcissism, selfishness. Alpha/beta is a better fit, even if alpha/alpha attraction is stronger.

Hi Evan, great post! This reminds me of a few chats I have had with women. They were telling me the exact same, they want and desire a prime leader, a part of that masculinity of being a man. Women don’t necessarily have it, it’s just a part of the female verses the male energy.
Masculine energy should be more assertive and have leadership quality, while women are meant to be softer, loving and more nurturing. It’s in their nature. Women are looking for that ying and yang in their life, for a man to be that leader.
I found some statistics in a well known magazine saying that in 2011 the most attractive profession to women is a doctor, for their leadership nature. But if you’re not a doctor don’t let this dishearten you. If you are confident you can attract anyone.

I’ve been reading your blog since 2009, Evan. It’s been a slow, but dogged evolution for me as I learned more about how the man’s mind works and as I determined how my mind worked. What I worked out for myself over time is that one of the most important traits that I wanted was just a capacity to be loving. In great part due to your advice, Evan, I have strived to keep an open mind and am currently dating a nice man. I am also loving every minute of it. I encourage him to make decisions and thoroughly enjoy my time with him when he does. I make an effort to let him know how much I enjoyed myself too. However, I can see one or two instances where I might have discouraged him inadvertantly and will keep a look out to help prevent those moments. Thank you, Evan, for all your advice. Not only have you helped me be more accepting of possibilities, but you are helping me to help establish healthy habits in my relationships. For that, I will continue to read your blog.

I personally think that alpha men are really over-rated. Long lasting relationships are based on compromise and team-work. I don’t want an alpha male or a beta male, instead, what I look for in a partner is someone who takes the lead when it’s crucial when he take the lead, and relaxes, when he’s suppose to relax.

He needs to pick the restaurant to be a leader thing is kind of lame. What if they guy is new to the area or doesn’t eat out or really doesn’t have a preference on eating out? I don’t see how this signifies that he’s not a “leader”. Most women that I know have much stronger preferences for eating out then men, it makes sense that this decision is deferred to women.

I disagree with the 60 hour work week and being emotionally unavailable. These days, if you want to make a decent income, I don’t see how you can work less than 60 hours a week. What about investment bankers and C-level business men and women.. or even students or men in law enforcement or the military… who work up to 100-hours a week and still manage to keep their marriages and raise their children? Even if a guy has to work 100+ hours a week, as long as he communicates that I’m important to him and he takes out the few free hours here and there to spend quality time with me, that’s fine by me. Better than a guy who works 40-hours a week and calls once a week.

@Leslie
I find what you said, somewhat interesting when you mentioned you dont an want alpha male. Yes, I understand we can all be selective in our choices for men or women, however, i think alpha males have this bad reputation hovering over them. In may personal opinion Alpha man shouldn’t be known as tarts or playas or whatever, some use this method for socializing skills. I know as I have helped friends of friend, and having these resources in there back pocket it makes it easier for them to approach men or women and furthermore you feel captivated by his confidence.

Hi Evan,
I just read this article today and 30 minutes later I was on the phone with an Alpha Male that I am newly dating. It wasn’t until we were off the phone that I realized (even though I had JUST read your article) I did EXACTLY what you suggest NOT to do!!!! I had a preconceived notion of what I wanted to do so when he suggested we go on a date tomorrow I had the BALLS to suggest something different!! What a twit!! It wasn’t until we were off the phone I realized I had done it. I don’t even realize what a pattern it is of mine to always try to “make it even better”. I’m a strong woman and more then anything I want a STRONG masculine man… this means learning to receive the suggestions he makes, be excited about the date and not try to “make it even better”. THAT can be very annoying to a man! I’m so grateful I’m reading your blog and learning so much from it. More then anything I want to end my “relationship breaking” patterns and accept the man how he is and who he is…. not changing him into someone different (because that would piss me off if he did it to me). Thanks again for your brilliant way of communicating in a way I can understand it and implement it!

@Missy: I don’t think Evan means u can Never make suggestions to a strong male, though. 🙂 I think it’s fine and sexy to make your own suggestions too. I’m been dating a guy who’s quite ‘alpha’ too (although not 100%, he’s too sweet to be totally alpha lol) and I do suggest ideas for dates too. In fact, once when he was asking me which of 2 places I wanted to eat at, and I asked him to pick, he said (although nicely) something like “Well c’mon, I don’t wanna make -all- the decisions”.

Recently in another forum I read a post by a man who said he had 3 good dates with a woman who seemed interested in him. He questioned her interest however, when he expected her to be the one to ask him for a 4th date and she never did.
Women are told to let men lead in courtship. They are told to understand the masculine-feminine dynamic: men pursue, women accept. They are told if they ‘chase’ a man, they will chase him away because they are trying to take over his ‘job’. So what’s going on with the fellow above?

I’ve never been in such a situation, but I think if a man conveyed to me he wanted me to start leading in this way it would feel uncomfortable. Like he wanted to be “the girl” in the relationship – operate in feminine energy himself. It would feel off.

If I had 3 good dates where I showed interest and never heard from the guy again, I would have concluded he wasn’t into me. It never would have occurred to me after date 3 he was done ‘pursuing’ and it was now “my turn”. Is this the new dating protocol – man leads for 2-3 dates, then switches off to the woman? What happens after that?
Thoughts anyone? Evan?

I acted like a “beta” woman in order to attract an alpha male, because I know that these are the things that alpha men search for. So, you could imagine the shock of their lives when my true alpha colors emerged one year or so into the relationship, in such a slow and pscyhcological manner that they didn’t know what hit them until it was too late! i had taken control over their lives, knew too much information, enough to destroy them if they did not obey my demands. And yes, I turn alpha men into beta men – and out of fear. He behaves well, and has kept it up for 6 years, mostly staying at home doing my washing and driving me to work and shopping.

How timely, I definitely have a strong will, thank goodness I’ve simmered down but from reading this I understand. I was dating a nice guy (who did have balls, btw – which was a good thing) and we were in a constant power struggle. It sucked though because during the last month of us dating (we dated for about 3 months) he would always ask “what do you want to do?” I told him flat out I didn’t always want to make all the decisions yet the suggestions he made were usually grabbing a pizza pie and watching a movie on a Friday night… It got so bad to when I would make the decision, I think that he intentionally found a way to comment on my choices in a negative way.

I was laughing about the comment that was made by a client of yours who hated the dive bar, yet wanted him to make the decisions. I get that having a nice guy with balls is better than having a true alpha male any day — especially when the alpha male on a date can put on a show, because of his experience with women, confidence etc… whereas the nice guy is more authentic and concerned about what the women wants.
I don’t know, this whole love thing drives me nuts!!!

@ISLE
offfff I laughed hard! loool I’m no “alpha” woman nor do I want to be, but I used to be more of a tomboy in my teens, even though I always dressed womanly/girly..that’s why guys my own age thought I was cute and innocent until they talked to me lol. I’m more of the funny/witty/sarcastic type than the driven ambtious alpha, and still my cleverness made guys insecure
So that’s why one of the things the man I want to marry must have is that he must be 10 years older than me because maybe then my “inner tomboy” might not manage to shock him later in life lol..because of his age he might always be a few steps ahead of me..
I don’t get a good feeling from the steorotypes “alpha” and “beta”, bcz one is bad boy and the other “good” (weak) boy..I like true masculine responsible mature men, not lil mommy boys or the typical boring bad boys, no wonder I’ve never been seriously attracted to any guys because they often fall into only those categories..
This just killed me: “..and out of fear. He behaves well, and has kept it up for 6 years, mostly staying at home doing my washing and driving me to work and shopping.”
Uff you remind me of my older sister. She’s one of the most alpha ppl’s I’ve ever met, she doesn’t even act beta and yet alpha men get weak with her, I have to say she’s very good looking so that may explain..I think men who get weak with strong women, never was any “alpha”, true masculine men never feel threatened/”emasculated”. no matter what.

me being a guy, is it wrong that I view being assertive, taking charge, taking control, taking the lead, leading, as a chore, as work? why are us guys supposedly supposed to enjoy taking initiative, doing the approaching, leading and being assertive? seriously I hate, despise, loathe gender roles with a huge raging passion, pisses me off so much, I hate how us guys are always told to “Man Up, be a Man, Grow a Pair, Grow some Balls”, I hate how us guys are expected to be so god damn strong all the damn time, pisses me off so much that I sometimes feel like beating up a girls boyfriend out of jealousy and anger, it’s like the nerdy quiet, shy passive guy wanting to challenge the popular jock to a fight to prove to the world that shy, quiet, passive, innocent guys are not as weak as you make them out to be, and I don’t see how fighting would make a guy look weak, after all it involves testosterone, and testosterone is a masculine hormone

I feel ya. Why can’t two people just come together and make a decision together. I’m w an alpha male and I’m not an alpha female or beta. I will never be submissive nor will I ever be a leader. Wth is wrong with both people making decisions together? I’m so pissed that I’m hearing this shit. I hate him a little bit more every time I can’t do what feels right to me. I’m very passive not submissive and its destroying my life. I wish I was by myself. Alpha males suck balls and make me feel unhappy and like I’m wasting my life for someone I despise.

Something I’ve wondered about now for awhile is what role a man’s nationality plays in him taking the initiative. I’m US born and raised for the first half of my life, and have lived in Canada for the second half. (I’m in my 50’s). Generally speaking I find Canadian men my age to be very very passive and don’t initiate contact online.

Not long ago I had a lovely first date (dinner) with a very nice guy. As he was taking me home he said “I’m terrified”.

I asked him why. He replied “Because I like you and I’m afraid of doing something wrong.”

Well, that neatly summed up my experience with Canadian middle-age/senior men. Canadians, generally, are quite passive. Especially as compared to Americans. Very different culture.

Literally the only men who initiate contact with me online are American. It’s quite interesting. I’m very much an alpha but have toned that way down in my personal life and am really embracing my feminine energy. I think I’ve tweaked my profile to reflect that. Still..it’s only the American guys who initiate.

Hmm well as I write this it’s just dawned on me that in the last several weeks of focusing strongly on embodying the feminine, I’ve been getting hit on nearly every time I leave the house. (Getting my car serviced. At the hardware store while looking at hummingbird feeders. Taking the dog for a walk.) It’s a little hilarious, somewhat gratifying as an older babe, and startling. The more feminine (passive?) I get, the more the Canadian guys are interested.

I am currently involved with an Alpha Male who is of the arrogant, egotistical, self-centred type. It can be very frustrating at times, especially when he is more distant and immersed in his work. But when he does take charge and tells me exactly what he wants, i take great pleasure in following his lead (within established boundaries). The main issue for me is that, as Evan has repeatedly said on this blog, he only does what he wants to do, when he wants to do it, on his terms. So unfortunately, i find i am frequently left frustrated, waiting for his attention. Evan rightly observes in this post that the girlfriend is likely to come second to an alpha’s work/freedom. Because of that, I’m yet to decide if this relationship is worth it.

I have to say I agree with everything you just said, I don’t like it but it’s true as an independent woman who have battled through a health and life issues to come out the other end I have had to develop a get out of my way persona, and it has now stuck and I get a lot of quiet guys around me not all of which have turned out to be nice.

I was once trying to do “the rules” , but it just didn’t work, because these guys just didn’t get enough feedback from me to confidently pursue, not only that my larger than personality can be intimidating. IMO, appreciate the nice guy and know what you want, will he give it to you, over time you may start to see more than meets the eye. It’s worth having a look. remember keep an eye on those red flags though.

I find many women do nothing but search for red flags. They are so convinced you have them, that they have serious trust issues. Nobody is perfect. Everybody has a red flag or two. The idea is to find somebody whose imperfections you can live with. You don’t have to actually search for red flags, you just have to not deny that they are there when they actually pop up.

But suppose you find what seems to be a great guy. Everything seems great, and then you find out that he had, or has a restraining order against him. OK, so do you run screaming for the hills? Or simply ask him about it? Many guys have had one taken on them because many women use them as power plays. They go in, claim that you are a bad guy with one of a million scenarios, and the judge almost always grants them, at least for a short duration, just as a precaution, to allow emotions to dissipate, and cool heads to be the norm again. The judge may very well know that both are at fault, or nobody is really at fault, and maybe the woman is exaggerating, but they prefer to grant a short restraining order, than not, and then have that one in a millions psycho be that guy, and he kill the girl the next week. Yeah, they hate being ambushed by reporters with the, “why didn’t you protect her?” question.

The point is, life is better lived out in the sunlight, than hiding in a cave where it is safe. I’ve had to walk away from many relationships because the woman simply had too many trust issues.

Probably one of the most informative articles on relationship dynamics that I have ever read! I literally laughed out loud throughout much of it because IT IS SO TRUE! I’m guilty as hell for doing this, that’s why I found it so humorous. And for how much sense it makes. Even some of the other comments on here, “alpha females” defending their case, are demonstrating the validity of the article right in itself with out even realizing it… Not letting the MAN (aka YOU) lead the discussion! 🙂 I just love all the contradictions us “alpha women” make.
thanks for writing this. I totally know now what I need to work on, finally! Go with the flow when the nice guy leads and be happy with it, and the next time we make plans, I’ll pick on my own! seems Pretty fair to me

I have been with an alpha male for 12 years. And hate every minute of it. I was forced into submission. I’m more passive than submissive. The reason why I just do what he says is because I don’t want to fight. I’m not an alpha female either. I guess you can put me into the independent category. Even though I depend on him, I feel like my independence was stolen from me. He always says where would you be, what would you have without me. I say I’d be happy. Every decision he makes for me, I literally want him to disappear. I’m not submissive and never will be. I know he loves me to the moon and back. He calls me selfish all the time, I put on a happy face for our kids and that is why I stay. He wants me to get into bdsm and I decided to look onto it for him and this is when I discovered its not about sex w him, its every aspect of our lives. I hate it. Hate it hate it HATE it. I always say this to myself, “I’ll never be with another man after this one, I’ll be by myself for the rest of my life. And be stoked about it. I want to do what I want when I want to do it.. I’m so pissed while writing this because I feel like I wasted my life being w this guy. If you girls need someone to be submissive to you could have him. He’s all yours. He’s great in bed. That’s probably why I’m still here.

Um, how about you just find a nice guy instead of giving up on guys overall? How about you disappear instead of waiting for him to disappear? How about you end 12 years of misery and take control of your life?

I ask myself that everyday. I stay so my kids would have a happy life. They do not know I’m miserable. You might think I sound crazy but he made it so I can’t leave. When I met him I had a great job, I was in college, a 19 yrs old that had a retirement plan benefits all that stuff. He’s 15 yrs older than me. Anyway I moved in w him after a few months of dating. Realized he wasn’t for me. I tried to leave. But I made the dumb decision to keep sleeping w him so I wouldn’t be a slut. Well got pregos. Long story short he convinced me not to finish school ” for the baby” quit my job ” for the baby” oh yeah we aren’t married either so I don’t have ins. He bought a house in his name, somehow convinced me that we were so broke we needed to buy clothes for the kids. I racked up credit cards in my name then he informed me I’ll be filing for bankruptcy. So now I have no job no career bad credit and I can’t take half the house. He did this on purpose he forced me to stay. Ultimately i made these decisions. So in the end its my fault. I do feel very weak. But strong at the same time because I know my kids will have beds to sleep in. Its all about them now. The last post was a bad one because I was extremely pissed at the time. I’m much more calm now. Need not reply I feel stupid

Oh Kathy. Evan’s right, take control of your life. I know u already feel stupid and so don’t wanna be too harsh, but it’s awful if u waste away the rest of your life like this. U sound like u have a v external locus of control, ie u tend to attribute events in your life to external circumstances such as what other pple do, bad luck, chance etc (not unlike those who believe in fate). Pple with v internal locus of control believe it’s primarily their own choices, skills etc that determine events, and that they have plenty of power to change their lives.

It’s a key psychological concept because, unfortunately, those with external LOC fare worse in life in many ways. Eg unsurprisingly, they have higher rates of depression, obesity, lower job success etc etc. I’m not trying to be mean, but perhaps therapy might improve your life, to change your locus of control to be more internal. Don’t feel so helpless and paralysed! Btw I don’t want to disagree with u about the fact that he loves u ”to the moon and back”, but his actions don’t show it. And 12 yrs and he hasn’t married the mom of his kid? U’re so unhappy! Leave him!!!

Semi-unrelated to your problem, just a recent study I saw which is yet more bad news for those with external loci of control. Rich pple have internal loci. (But this is correlational only) Take charge, y’all.

This is such good advice. I’m not even an alpha female, but I do have lots of confidence and assertiveness, plus I’m fussy sometimes! When it comes to where to eat, I’m easy and let him choose. But when, say, picking a movie, I tend to only want to watch my fav kinds of movies, instead of letting him pick some action film. Thanks for the advice Evan! *BOOKMARKED*

I have to admit, Evan, I had never quite thought of it this way: “If you want him to lead, you have to be willing to follow”. As someone who is dating a very alpha male, and loving it, he once remarked to me that one of the things he loves about me is that I *DO* let him lead. I’m happy when he plans things, makes decisions, and generally takes care of me. In return, I am able to unleash my feminine energy, and be both receptive and grateful to and for him, and all of his alpha qualities. I don’t waste my time arguing about little details or questioning his every decision. It’ s not that he doesn’t care about my opinion, or that I’m disallowed to have them, rather, it’s that I’ve learned that most stuff really doesn’t matter all that much, and that my energy is best preserved for the things that I do truly care about. Great stuff here!

Great post, having tried to tame Alphas all my life, I knew the problem was me & something had to change. When I stopped trying to change them, the game shifted & I now have all the cards & have an amazing relationship. What’s more, despite being a super Alpha guy, he has over the year developed a softer side ! literaly changing effortlessly because by me allowing him to be & lead, I also allow him to explore his vulnerable side.

Great article. I once found myself in a similar situation as Lisa M. When it became clear that I would either have to suppress my personality if I wanted a relationship with him, or he would just sleep with me and disappear, I chose not to get involved at all. Stubborn me. I still think about him too, and what might have been. But, hey, beta guys need love too! Am with one now, and we get along better than I ever have in any previous relationship.

This whole post was just whiny. Even in the comments, you’re whiny. Obviously you’re a beta. I didn’t even get through the whole post and comments section. I got tired of mentally rolling my eyes at you blaming women for all the problems. Very bitter beta thing to do. There are 7bill/2 men in this world all experiencing group dynamics, and you’re calling confidence and leadership rare? Oh please. Of course you’d have to force yourself to allow betas to lead. They expect a space to open too for them like any self-entitles gen Y. *eyeroll

I’m one of those alpha beta guys (well maybe 60% beta) I’ve been around enough to know not to fight over smaller things. The woman I married played the hot beta girl for the period of our dating and engagement, and then turned into a badass alpha woman.
I’ve agreed to her whims for more than i cared for over the last 4 years (there are kids involved) but I hated the pushover’ve become in the name of peace.
Especially that in an alpha woman, it is still the woman part that dominates (emotional, impulsive) and her decisions often led to trouble.
Obviously neither of us is happy. (Because of the above reasons, I feel stifled, and she un-romance) needless to say we are heading a for a divorce. The only reason I didn’t walk out before was that we got preg early on. But she’s totally unable to compromise…

You just saved my relationship. Every article of yours that I’ve read has been ON POINT. I am an Alpha female and am dating a Beta male who is wonderfu! But we argue because I think he is not passionate enough and I want him to take the lead. But when he does his own thing, I’m not satisfied. This is hard honestly, but I’m taking your advice!

After trying to have an equal relationship in my first marriage, she cheated. So being in med school at the time of divorce, I asked my parents to get me a wife. She was 18 and scared to marry me (22). She did when I made it clear I would make all final important decisions.

31 years and 4 kids later, both very happy. Now 2 daughters have married men they will OBEY, the third is looking for an alpha and my son is disgusted with modern American women.

I provide (250K), protect, and love her EXCLUSIVELY. Her friends are envious and divorced. My friends are envious and divorced. Everybody says they want it natural, but not when it comes to human nature. We don’t, which is why she still gets goosebumps when I hug her. No sbdm, and I’m no control freak. But I get RESPECT or she gets silence and distance. If I get respect she gets 90% of what she wants.

Hmm I faced this perdiciment myself. Struggled with Dating pushovers for a while, then met a self centered narcissist who gave me some new perspective.

Led me down the path to realize that the only way to get the best of both worlds short of dating a million other men to find the sensative Alpha Male thats truly 1 in a million was to find an Alpha who was older or reformed though experience.

Old enough to know that he could no longer attract the same level of woman they did at 20 years old or they may end up with the arm candy thats truly not very nice to them at home. Yes she may be a goddess but if you pick an arm candy gold digger with a mean side then you better show her off lots to make up for the lack of emotional kindness and empathy and probable lack of intelligence.

Or pick a young girl who wont stay with you when she grows up.

Leaving me to the conclusion that the best other possible scenario was to find an Alpha who had a drastice life altering experince. Open to emotion and whom responds to kindness and trust.

We both know my value and what I bring to the table. But my decission is to be submissive. In fact I have come to terms with letting go of many things. Because I want his protection, wisdom and love. And the more I surrender to what he wants the more I am finding that we water each others gardens. Our love has blossomed and who he is now, is a strong but composed and thoughtful man who holds me all night long and makes me smile. He is soft with me when we need to discuss things but I always make sure to let him make the ultimate decission.

I have become a respectful loving honest woman who will do anything for him and never vito his decissions. But when he sees in my eyes that I am truly not happy he makes it right. He stays calm and asks me my imput. He knows that I will follow him but he also values what I have to say.

That has always been ny dream. So the dream man I ended up with is an Alpha male, dashingly handsome, and a veteran in a wheelchair. I could not have asked for anything more in my man. We need each other, love each other and enjoy the everyday benefits of a well balanced relationship.

Why is it that a guy, a man, is never too old or never too late to improve his dating life, never too old to become the dominant, leader, leading take-charge type of man that women want? too many people will argue and say “because your past is not your future, only if you let it” or never too get to get a girlfriend, a relationship? to me it seems that dating and relationships is something that primarily young people do more than any other part of their live, it’s something that mostly teens, 20’s and early 30’s people do.

Happy Clients

"Many thanks to, you, Evan. You really know what you’re talking about – and you CARE."

The Inner Circle really has been a learning process for which I'm grateful. In the meantime, I am enjoying a type of peace and ease in a relationship that I’ve never experienced before. That, in itself, is a tremendous gift to me, and worth its weight in gold.

Melanie R.

"I'm in love, getting married and hopefully starting a family soon. I couldn't be any happier."

You didn't always tell me what I wanted to hear, but what I needed to hear. You were honest with me even when I didn't like it. You put a mirror to my face...no one enjoys that but it's important if you really want to make a change and find the real thing.

He is everything I never knew I always wanted. He is kind and caring, with wonderful values. He makes me feel like the most special woman in the world. I never have to wonder how he feels about me, I KNOW.

Lisa R.

“You opened my eyes to the fact that my boyfriend left because he didn’t love me unconditionally.”

I am in such a better place today because of your insights and inspirational guidance. I was so stuck on getting him back, but now I realize that I don’t want him back! I deserve someone who will love me unconditionally, no matter what.

Ana C.

"Working with Evan has helped me to really value myself and to be myself when I am dating. This is priceless."

Look, I can say I feel more confident than ever before but it’s more than that. Working with Evan has helped me to really value myself and to be myself when I am dating. This is priceless. It’s not perfect but I have come a thousand miles from where I was and feel so lucky.